In Search of Love Unknown
by Theodosius
Summary: It takes Shepard and Garrus to get caught up in a mystery to realize what they feel for one another. Will it be too late?
1. Chapter 1

**In Search of Love Unknown**

**Chapter 1**

It was up to one ship and a handful of people to find a way to do the impossible. They were on a mission unlike any other, the result of which had the potential to decide the fate of the galaxy. Stopping an army of geth commanded by a rogue Spectre on his way to revive an ancient machine race seemed like a job for the Citadel fleet, not a lone frigate. Life was unfair.

Commander Shepard lied on the bed of her private quarters in the Normandy SR-1, the holographic computer screen on the desk on the other side of the room being the only source of light. She was thinking over the events that had transpired since the attack on Eden Prime. She remembered the feeling she had when she saw the once beautiful human colony turned into ash and dust, filled with death and destruction. Nobody was sure who the enemies really were at the time, and yet it was apparent just how merciless they were. It wasn't an image that could be easily forgotten. No one in the colony deserved what they got. And Shepard's job was to make sure that nobody else had to go through that horror again. It was not a job to be taken lightly, and only now did she realize just how important it was that she succeed.

While she would have obviously preferred to have the Citadel Council right by her side during these dark times, Shepard vowed that she'd do whatever she could to thwart any kind of threat, regardless of whether a whole planet's survival hanged in the balance, or the life of a single person. It was just who she was. Being the first human Spectre was not the reason for that. Many people thought that her benevolence came from the Council's demands of her after she had been put in that position, but she had been like that from the very beginning. Being a Spectre only gave her the required resources to act on her intentions.

It was this kind of qualities that made her the charismatic person she was, a leader. That's why so many people had put faith in her, and the fear of letting all of them down was all too real, now more than ever because of the quest she had been given; a quest many would label as suicide. It was overwhelming, and she had to endure that internal struggle alone. It was not a fight she could have a squad standing beside her in. It was not a fight that could be won with guns and grenades. That's why she did the only thing she could. She kept a straight, confident face, never showing her weaknesses, never thinking too much of defeat or whoever she might lose under her command.

"Commander!", Joker's voice over the intercom startled her, bringing her back from her reverie, "There's something you need to hear. You'd better come up here ASAP."

Shepard was thankful that she finally had something to do. These thoughts only threatened to come to her when she wasn't busy fighting or doing a mission of some kind. Judging by the worried tone of Joker's voice, it was evident that something was wrong. They were supposed to be on their way to Noveria, following a lead on Saren, but that would have to wait. Shepard left her private quarters and started running up the stairs towards the CIC, the soldiers saluting her on the way, and then she proceeded towards the bridge to see what the problem was. She approached Joker, looking through the Normandy's window, making sure that there were no evident threats in the vicinity.

"What's going on, Joker?", Shepard inquired, standing over her ship's pilot, his hands feverishly working on the console.

"There's some kind of a distress signal that the Normandy picked up at the far end of the system, Commander", Joker immediately explained, "It's very faint, and if we didn't have that high-end descrambler, we'd have received little more than static noise."

"So nobody else could have picked this up?", Shepard asked.

"Nobody with the conventional tech that comes with most ships, no", Joker shook his head as he replied, "I think you'll want to hear it. It's being sent on a loop."

Joker tried to adjust the Normandy's systems to pick up the signal again as Shepard impatiently waited to hear what the distress call had to say. After a bit of cursing on Joker's part, it finally began playing on the Normandy's intercom.

"To anyone hearing this message, please, help me!", a timid male voice could be heard whispering, "My name is Crin Quinos. I'm locked up in a cell in a ship… I think I was kidnapped by pirates. Please, if you're hearing this, trace this signal and find me before they kill me!"

And then the message abruptly ended until it started repeating itself from the beginning. Joker disabled it as soon as it was heard by the crew a second time.

"Not a lot to go on", Shepard sighed, "Good find regardless, Joker. Trace the signal."

"I already have", Joker replied, pressing something on the console to show a hologram of a massive cruiser, not quite resembling any known dreadnoughts, "This is where it's coming from. It's a big one, Commander, and it's flying around the planet of Veles. It could be a new Terminus warship for all we know."

"I don't think they'll just let anyone board", Shepard suspected, analyzing the ship's exterior as shown by the hologram.

"No, ma'am, I doubt they would", Joker said, scratching his head as he added, "Wonder how that guy has managed to send that call, though it does make sense that they wouldn't be able to pick it up if they lack the proper equipment."

"I guess I'll be going in alone", Shepard concluded after her scrutiny of the ship, pointing her finger at a certain vent at the bottom half of the hull, "This is where they dump their garbage, I take it?"

"What? You are not actually thinking of going there? Alone?", Joker protested, looking at Shepard with a very rare earnest and concerned expression on his face, "Commander, even with Normandy's stealth drive, they'll still be able to look through a window and see that they'll be about to have an uninvited guest! And going through the vent is risky, what if they decide to dump…"

"It's a risk I'm willing to take, Joker", Shepard interrupted her pilot, "I know it's dangerous, but I believe I can infiltrate the ship without being detected and find the guy", and as soon as she noticed that Joker was about to protest once again, she added, "Come on, how many times have we thrown ourselves in harm's way? You're acting as if I've never put my life on the line before."

"You really think it's worth the effort, Commander?", Joker asked, obviously still not convinced.

"Every life is worth the effort. We won't turn our back on anyone who needs us", Shepard replied with unyielding confidence, "Sometimes we have to remember _why_ we're saving the galaxy, Joker."

Joker looked as if he was about to reply, but stopped himself at the last second, thinking over what Shepard had just said. The Commander had just begun to outline her plan of attack in her head when she heard her name being called by a certain approaching turian, striding through the Normandy's bridge.

"Commander! I heard the message over the intercom", Garrus said, "I know this Crin Quinos. He was a friend I met back on Palaven until I joined C-Sec. I tried to reach him in the last couple of years but I haven't heard from him since."

"Your friend's got himself into quite a predicament", Joker commented.

"I'll do what I can to save him, Garrus", Shepard assured, "This message has been on a loop for quite some time. I can't say for certain if he's still alive, but if he is, I'll do my best to bring him back."

"Wait… You're not going in alone, are you?", Garrus replied indignantly, a concerned look on his face that slightly resembled Joker's, "You have no idea what defenses this ship may have, and by the looks of it, it's bigger than any turian dreadnought I've ever seen!"

"Yes, Garrus, fighting a ship like that head-on is definitely not a good idea. That's why I'm going in as quietly and discreetly as I can", Shepard answered firmly.

"Commander, I understand you feel the need to do this, but I have a personal stake in it, as well", Garrus retorted, looking over the ship schematics that were still being projected, "Let me help. I can be a ghost when I want to be."

"It's not going to be easy. And if they discover us…", Shepard managed to say until Garrus interrupted her.

"I know", he said, now looking at Shepard, as determined of his decision as she was, "That's why I'm coming with you, Commander. I promise I won't screw up."

"All right. I can see there's no dissuading you", Shepard gave up, withholding a chuckle when she realized just how stubborn Garrus was, reminding her of herself, "We'll be breaking through their garbage vent."

"Right on. Meet you in the cargo hold?", he inquired, already half-turned towards the CIC.

"You bet", Shepard nodded, and with that, Garrus bolted towards their rendezvous point.

"Be careful, Commander", Joker turned to Shepard, "I'll have to make myself scarce as soon as I drop you off."

"I will. Try not to get into trouble while we're gone again", Shepard smiled and headed towards the cargo hold herself.

"Hey, you can't blame me for those colonists going berserk on us back here!", Joker yelled so that Shepard could hear him as she went on further, recalling the Feros incident.

Quickly walking past the CIC and running down the stairs to the elevator, Shepard rummaged through her locker next to the sleeping pods to pull out all of her gear, including the helmet she would have most definitely needed while being in open space. Thoughts of potential failure did not come to her this time, as with all of her prior missions, she was once again swept up in the storm. It was what she was disciplined to do. Besides, having Garrus with her did bring her some degree of comfort; he always knew what he was doing while out in the field, and his tactical prowess would have helped immeasurably. Most importantly, though, she needed someone she could trust with her life on this mission, and with all they've been through together, however little that was, Garrus had earned that trust.

Shepard had already put on her armor and picked up the weaponry that came with it when she got on the Normandy elevator leading her towards the cargo hold. Boy, did it take a little too long to move down a single floor. The door to the elevator finally opened, and as it did, Shepard immediately saw Garrus, who was standing next to the lockers and had put his helmet on, checking every inch of his sniper rifle to make sure it was flawless. A habit he had before going out on a mission, and while Shepard did it as well with all of her weapons, Garrus was so thorough that it was amusing.

"I don't know about you, but I bet that we'll mostly be fighting in close quarters on that ship, Garrus", Shepard smirked, "Think you might be at a disadvantage when you can't use that sniper rifle all the time?"

"Hey, I know how to hold a rifle, Commander", Garrus slouched on one of the lockers, "It's yourself you should be concerned about. Say your biotic amp glitches for some reason. You might actually have to use a gun for a change."

"Careful I don't use it on you", Shepard teased back, crossing her arms, trying to look threatening.

"Commander, get ready!", Joker suddenly said over the ship's intercom, "We're approaching the ship, stealth systems are online. I won't be able to stay too long so you'd better jump into the vent as soon as I open the cargo bay doors."

"Understood, Joker. We're ready", Shepard replied, walking up to the door along with Garrus.

Taking a deep breath, Shepard prepared herself for the worst. It was a very daring plan, but sneaking in was the only way she thought of to have a chance at rescuing the prisoner. She glanced sideways at Garrus, and could notice that he was on edge, as well. That didn't reassure her much, but at least he was going to be there with her. Somehow she knew that she would regret going in alone, even though she had felt that it was the right decision at the time.

Thankfully she didn't have much time to dwell on it as Joker's voice came on the intercom again to announce that the cargo bay doors were opening and that the Normandy was already below the ship.

As soon as the doors started lifting up, the room they were in was depressurized, and Shepard could immediately feel the weightlessness. A part of the massive cruiser could already be seen through the door, but most of it was blocked by the vent the Normandy had almost attached itself to. It had definitely seen better days as there was obvious damage to both of its sides as what would have been a clear silver wall was now smudged from the lack of proper maintenance. There was enough ground for a person to jump onto, but the vent was sealed shut and it was not meant to open from the outside.

Garrus was the first one to leap across, surprising Shepard with his determination. He landed safely on the other side, making sure to let his Commander know that it was safe to follow him, nodding his head in a sign of reassurance. It wasn't long before Shepard found herself next to him, and then the Normandy immediately flew away towards the nearby planet of Veles. Everything was up to them now.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

That was it. With the Normandy gone, everything rested on Shepard and Garrus' shoulders now. There was no room for error whatsoever, and Garrus had managed to see the cracks in Shepard lately. Every mission they undertook was taking its toll on her, though she did a great deal of effort to hide it. With every passing minute Saren had more time to get ahead, and Shepard knew that she had less and less to go on. Her confidence had taken a hit, and Garrus could see it in her eyes. He felt like he had to be the first one to leap across the abyss in an effort to answer that wavering confidence. She had not been ready for such a responsibility, and watching it being placed on her was hard to bear. So he did everything he could, assisting her with missions like this, though he couldn't really provide the type of help she really needed.

He watched as Shepard powered up her omni-tool and started looking for ways to hack the door. The security system was very tight, but it had its loopholes, and luckily for them, it was at its weakest around the exhaust ports and vents, and that made it easy for Shepard to eventually get the door open. It nearly stopped half-way through, nearly jamming on them. It looked as if it hadn't been used in years. Thankfully, the way through the vent to the ship looked stable enough. With the same hacking command Shepard managed to get the door closed, pressurizing the remainder of the vent. Garrus removed his helmet at his earliest convenience.

"So far, so good", he commented, his mandibles twitching into the turian equivalent of a smile while Shepard also pulled off her helmet.

"The hard part is just beginning", she smiled back, pulling out her pistol.

"Keep track of kills?", Garrus challenged. They frequently did this while on missions as part of their friendly rivalry, and also as a way to help them focus.

"If you insist on losing again", Shepard shrugged mockingly.

"And here I thought you'd actually appreciate my attempts at gallantry", Garrus replied, trying to look offended, "Fine, then. No more mister nice guy from now on."

There was a loud clank deeper into the ship. Shepard immediately pressed her finger to her lips and Garrus obeyed without hesitation. He had pulled out his sniper rifle and had his visor ready to target potential hostiles. Shepard motioned for him to follow her into the vent. It was completely dark so they turned on the flashlights of their guns.

Garrus was glad to see Shepard back in action, her face focused on the task at hand, now determined to fight off anything that was sent their way. He knew that counting kills was bound to cheer her up as it always did. The vent was a bit too claustrophobic so they walked into a straight line. It seemed to go on forever until they finally stumbled upon a crack in the right side of the wall. Now they knew why this vent was no longer used; it posed the danger of sucking in all the air from the room beyond. Shepard used a Biotic Pull at the cracked wall until it fell inside the vent, a hole towards a very dark room revealed. Shepard went inside easily, but Garrus was a bit bigger so he had to kick the crumbling wall to enlarge the hole so that he'd finally be able to get in.

"I don't like the look of this", Shepard whispered.

Garrus analyzed the room. Just like the vent, it had no lighting, so he had to look through it inch by inch with the help of the flashlight. It seemed like they were standing on a shaft underneath with exhaust fumes appearing every now and then. There was a window on the other side of the room with a picturesque view towards Veles and the star of Pax in the distance. There was a damaged door that led to a dark corridor with paths to the left and the right.

"Shepard…", Garrus whispered, exploring their surroundings with the flashlight of his sniper rifle, "If I had to guess, this ship has not been used in quite some time. It's either been abandoned… or it's a trap."

"I agree", Shepard nodded, immediately trying to contact the Normandy as she lifted her transceiver embedded on her hand to her ear, "Joker! Joker, are you there?"

"I thought we were to maintain radio silence", Garrus said.

"If there are people aboard, they're bound to know something's wrong anyway", Shepard whispered, "But it doesn't matter. There's some kind of interference. I can't get through."

"What?", Garrus worriedly replied, "Impossible. If something's jamming us, then the Normandy couldn't have picked up Crin Quinos' message."

"I don't know…", Shepard simply stated. Garrus could notice the anxiety in her voice.

"Let's keep on going, then", he motioned towards the corridor, "We'll find answers eventually. Don't worry. I've got your back, Shepard."

As she gave up trying to establish connection with the Normandy, Shepard tentatively started going through the dark corridor, her pistol and flashlight aloft. Garrus followed suit, making sure he had their backs covered. The corridor went left and right like a maze as they passed through a few damaged doors on either side until they got to where it ended at a door leading to the gun stations, if the sign above it could be trusted. Before they could go through, Shepard and Garrus heard an ominous snarl on the other side. That made them stop dead in their tracks.

"Well, at least we now know it's not abandoned", Garrus whispered, "It's just a trap."

"Real comforting", Shepard replied, though Garrus could see that he got her to smile, even if it lasted for a split second.

"I'm ready for anything, Shepard", Garrus assured, his sniper rifle aimed at the door.

Tapping the door with her omni-tool, Shepard got it open, revealing a much bigger room with two gun batteries on the left side, and a door on the other, but once again dark as the rest of the ship. They couldn't reveal much of it further with their flashlights until two husks suddenly appeared out of the corner of the door, hissing as they limped forward. Garrus reacted quickly and blew the head of one of them clean off, the other one falling victim to Shepard's Shockwave which sent it flying towards one of the gun batteries, hitting its head on the metal and falling to the ground. Garrus felt the need to make sure it was dead and fired a round into its torso just in case.

"Don't worry. That still counts as your kill", Garrus said after going through the room with the flashlight once again.

"Husks…", Shepard merely stated, "Another artifact that these people discovered, maybe? Turned them into these mindless creatures?"

"Yeah, we've seen a lot of those", Garrus sighed, "When will they ever learn that nothing good can come of this?"

"Why would they keep your friend hostage, though?", Shepard inquired, stepping inside the gun station, looking at the corpses of the husks.

"I don't know", Garrus spoke, only now realizing that he hadn't given his friend enough thought since coming onto the ship, his eyes on the floor, "But after seeing this… I don't think he's even alive."

"We don't know that", Shepard replied, making Garrus lock onto her eyes again, "But we'll find him, Garrus."

"So… You'd just risk your life for what all signs point to is a dead man?", Garrus asked confusedly. Shepard looked at him for a while in silence with an unreadable expression on her face.

"Don't you remember what I said during our encounter with Saleon?", Shepard finally answered, sounding a bit offended, "We can't account for the outcome of any mission, but we'll always do our best to make it a good one, if at all possible. What we _do_ have control of are our actions. I want to rescue your friend. I want to believe he's alive until I know otherwise. Don't you?"

"I know, I know…", Garrus said, regretting having asked the question, avoiding Shepard's scrutiny, "I'm sorry. It's just… I didn't think it through. You're right. I want us to find him."

Garrus looked at Shepard as she turned around and went on further towards the door of the next room. He followed her closely, thinking over their conversation, watching her expression while also looking over his shoulder for potential traps. His hatred and determination to find and put an end to Saren often clouded his judgement. Shepard was not always as easy for him to read and Garrus wondered if he had really angered her with his last comment, but on the outside she looked as focused as ever, leading them to the door on the far side of the room which revealed a dark corridor similar to the first one they had gone through. This time, though, it was a straight hallway towards another damaged door. Their steps echoed a little too loudly for Garrus' liking, but apart from that, the ship remained dead silent. There was the frequent exhaust from the shafts below, but nothing else. The walls of the corridor were smeared with blood. This was definitely an experiment gone wrong.

"Think this'll lead us to the communications room?", Garrus asked quietly.

"Hopefully either that or we'll stumble upon that cell your friend's locked in", Shepard answered, eyes locked on the door in front.

Just as he was about to reply, Garrus' visor prompted him of an invisible active laser emanated right in front of them in the middle of the hallway. Before realizing what it could all mean, Shepard had already gone through it, and the deafening silence was replaced with an extremely loud alarm instead, the corridor remaining as dark as it had been before.

"Shepard! Get behind me!", Garrus screamed, reaching out to Shepard, but his reflexes kicked in as he noticed a blast door coming down from above with incredible speed, barely missing Garrus' arm as it hit the ground, separating him from Shepard.

"Shepard!", Garrus yelled as he banged his fist on the door in despair, but instead of a reply from his Commander he heard several screams that came from husks on the other side, another alarm triggered, and a series of blast doors coming down. As he continued his shouts, now no longer bothering trying to keep quiet, he could hear the sounds of battle on the other side, but they gradually died away as more and more doors began sealing themselves. And then he heard Shepard scream his name in agony, and soon, the only sound that could be heard was the one caused by the contact of his fists and the blast door next to him in his futile attempt to somehow make it magically disappear.

"Shepard…", Garrus whispered, completely shocked as he couldn't think clearly for a good while until he realized what had just happened. Shepard was gone. She had fallen into a trap he didn't warn her in time about, and now for all he knew she could be dying because he wasn't there to help her as he should have in the first place.

Turning around frantically to see that there were two more passages on either side of the corridor that they had ignored, he strode towards the nearest one he could reach. His anxiety and alarm made it hard for him to hack it with his omni-tool, taking way more time to unlock it than it should have taken him. As soon as he did so, it revealed a dark room filled with crates. A dead end. He went to the other side of the corridor to try his luck with the other passage. Trying to keep his cool was getting increasingly difficult. He couldn't get Shepard out of his head and that hindered his hacking attempts.

Finally getting it right, he stepped into the next area which was a round room filled with empty weapon lockers with a window on the ceiling overlooking the stars and no other doors to speak of. Yet another dead end. He scanned it from top to bottom with his flashlight and visor but to no avail. The only other way around was the one they came through, and it only led to the vent they boarded from. There was nowhere else to go.

Garrus then proceeded to pace feverishly from one side of the corridor to the other, trying to figure things out, laying out his options, when he realized he didn't have any. He tried contacting the Normandy again even though he knew it wasn't going to work. How could he let this happen? He wanted to think that Shepard would handle this, he wanted to believe that she'd make it… But if she didn't? She was tough, but she was not invincible. Who knew what lied deeper into the ship and just how far the trap had taken her? He had to do something. Anything. How could he let the one ray of light in his messed up life to such a fate?

That last thought gave Garrus pause. Just what was Shepard to him, really? She was his superior, his Commander, but also a friend. He meant what he said while she helped him deal with Saleon – he hadn't met anyone like her. She had gone through a lot in life, lived through such horrors like the one on Akuze, and yet her heart and soul were still pure. She was a paragon who didn't refuse anyone in need of aid, always putting others' needs before her own. He had learned a lot from Shepard in the short time they spent together on various missions in their hunt for Saren.

He hadn't realized that his thoughts the past few days had revolved more and more around her and her well-being. Garrus believed that his concern for her was purely derived from their friendship. But now, the mere thought of Shepard not being present in his life anymore was unbearable. Even though he was the one who tried to help her deal with the psychological effects from having such a burden placed on her shoulders, he had come to depend on her himself. The life he had as an officer in C-Sec was miserable until he met her and joined her crew. And lately when she wasn't around it was only her presence that he longed for.

Was it possible that he was putting too much thought into this? He tended to do that, after all. Always overthinking things. There had to be a different reason for Shepard making him feel the way he did while she was around him. It was the way she could walk with unshakable determination when she wanted to, the way she could deal with any situation before her, the way she could command anyone to follow her to hell and back if they had to. There was no doubt as to why she was that ray of light amid the darkness that was the galaxy. And now the ship he was on felt much more darker than it had before.

He had to save her. He just had to. And nothing was going to stop him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Pain. A lot of terrible and excruciating pain.

Shepard gasped as she woke up in an impenetrable darkness. If she didn't feel the ground under her body as she lied curled up on the floor she wouldn't even know she was in a room. Her body ached terribly from top to bottom. Her hands were numb, but she could feel that they were locked in a pair of shackles that were attached to the wall behind her, as were her legs. Her head span and throbbed, she felt dizzy. She found it difficult to breathe because her chest hurt badly as she did so. She had never felt physically worse than she did now. And she lied in the nothingness.

What had put her in this position? For a while, Shepard couldn't even remember her own name or where she was until glimpses of the last few moments before she was knocked out started coming back to her. She was Commander Shepard. The first human Spectre, sent on a quest to stop Saren. And now she was on a mission to find an imprisoned turian on an unknown ship along with Garrus.

At the thought of his name she recalled what had happened immediately. Things had gone really bad. They had stumbled into a trap. She had tried to call for him as a blast door between them separated them from one another and then a legion of husks attacked Shepard from behind as she had put both of her hands on the door in a desperate attempt to go back to Garrus. She had begun unleashing her biotics on them but more and more doors threatened to lock her up and she ran as fast as she could. The deeper she went into the ship, the more husks appeared, and with Garrus no longer watching her back she panicked. A Singularity had stopped some of them, but the darkness ahead had hidden a lot more.

A crate she had found she used as a cover to revitalize herself and her powers, but the husks just kept on coming. Her pistol had soon overloaded and she hadn't made a dent in their numbers. She cried out Garrus' name in despair, worried as to whether he found himself in a similar situation. Shepard kept shouting despite knowing full well that there were at least half a dozen blast doors separating the two of them. As she defended herself from more of these mindless creatures she was hit from behind with incredible force. And then darkness, similar to the one she found herself in now. Just the mere memory of it brought back the pain she felt then.

Her armor was now gone, her captors only having left her with the clothes she had underneath, as far as she could tell. Her pistol had also been taken away, and she couldn't power up her biotics.

Somebody else had to have been behind it all, provided that she was even on the same ship as before. The husks couldn't have captured her, they always killed their victims and would see no use of holding anyone hostage. But for what reason? What was going on? How had things gone so out of control in such a short time?

Shepard looked around the dark room for any possible clues or anything that could help her escape, anything her captors could have missed, but there was nothing. All she could see is a window on the ceiling revealing the infinite star clusters and constellations light years away. She attempted fighting the shackles, but the harder she tried to break them, the worse the pain became. Soon it was unbearable and she finally gave up.

As much as it pained her to do so, she resulted to screaming Garrus' name, hoping that he was alive and was out there somewhere looking for her. She did not care if whoever had captured her was nearby and could hear her. But the silence persisted.

Was that the end for Commander Shepard? Was that mistake going to be her doom? Had she let down the entire galaxy in one split second? It sure felt that way. She failed herself. She failed the Citadel Council. And she failed Garrus. She shouldn't have let him board the ship with her. She should have gone in alone as she originally intended. It wasn't fair that he had to suffer because of her failures. And if he had died… She wouldn't be able to live with herself.

She had lost a lot of people under her command during her life already. The façade she put up hid the fact that she hadn't truly recovered from Akuze. That emotional scar had been haunting her forever. That came with the job and Shepard knew that she'd lose more people. But there was something about not seeing Garrus ever again that was unendurable.

More often than not she'd just talk to Garrus on the Normandy. Simply converse with him. Soon after what was once her subordinate had become her friend. It was the way he could just listen to her concerns and understand what she was going through that eventually made her seek solace from the turian. And now he could have possibly lost his life because she had sent him to what, in hindsight, was a suicide mission. She hadn't even noticed that tears were falling from her eyes. She couldn't remember when they started doing so.

And then she let them all out as she cried and cried for the first time in years. Her barrier had fallen. Shepard poured out all of her emotions and feelings she had kept concealed for so long. Lying curled up on the floor, she looked upwards to the stars through her teary eyes. She refused to believe that this was all over. Hope was the last thing to die. And she was not going to be reduced to an empty shell of a woman.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Every minute spent wondering what the hell he was supposed to do felt like an hour for Garrus. So many concepts flew in and out of his head, but none of them viable given the present circumstances. Those blast doors looked indestructible, and even if they weren't, he still lacked the necessary equipment to even make a dent in them. They could not be overwritten from an omni-tool command, either. Every so often Garrus' thoughts would divert back to Shepard. He knew that dwelling on her fate was neither helping him nor her but at times he couldn't help it. So he decided to take it into a different direction: What would Shepard do?

Among every single quality Shepard had, she was also a brilliant tactician, one of the many traits he admired in her. She would have thought of something. She always did. If he could think like her for a moment…

Then it hit him. The corridor they had gone through as soon as they left the vent had two paths. Even if the other part of the hallway led to a completely different area of the ship, it was still something to go on. Surely there was another way around the blast doors in this massive ship.

Even though he wanted to be at Shepard's side in an instant, Garrus knew that giving himself away was probably going to get him killed, and he was of no use to either one of them dead. So he started heading back quietly and calmly, this time making sure he didn't look over any potential traps, scanning the ship with his flashlight as he went.

Luckily he didn't encounter any resistance up until reaching the corridor in question. He went further on. Soon he arrived at its other side and was glad to discover that the door was not sealed. Upon opening it he prepared his sniper rifle for any potential hostiles, but there were none that he could see at the moment. He stood at the edge of what looked like a Combat Information Center after he carefully illuminated it. Not nearly as impressive as the one on the Normandy, it had few computer consoles scattered around the square room, neither of which seemed to be operational, and a holographic projector in the middle that didn't work, either. This ship had definitely seen better days. The damage, however, was inconsistent with what he assumed was an experiment on an artifact gone wrong that had turned all scientists into machine cultists. There were definitely signs of rifle fire inside, as well as damage to the outer wall layer that could only have been done from another ship. Garrus deduced that somebody had commandeered it from Terminus pirates. They were in a lot more trouble than he initially thought they were.

Garrus' visor picked up something active in the room. Then he saw that in one of the corners of the CIC there was a datapad on the floor nearly concealed from the side of one of the computers. He went over and picked it up and illuminated it with his flashlight. From what he could see at first glance, it was a journal. The latest entry read:

"The captain says we just can't shake them. For whatever reason they've been on our tail for I don't know how freaking long already. Our ship's thrusters have apparently taken a ton of damage and their vessel's cyberwarfare programs are much more superior than ours. Damn them!"

So his suspicions were correct. Someone desperately needed this ship for something. And how the hell did Crin Quinos fit in all this? The worst thing was that Shepard was in the middle of it, and for no fault of her own. He had to use whatever knowledge he could gather to find a way to save her. He could not lose her. If he did, then he'll have lost everything.

Putting the datapad aside, Garrus went through one of the two doors next to the CIC, keeping his guard up at all times. The silence was haunting him like a predator was following his prey. He hated it. He'd have preferred to fight hordes of enemies in broad daylight than to wait for somebody to stab him in the back in the dark. The door revealed a small battered medical bay. There were two beds on either side, all vacant. And, of course, like the whole of the ship, it was once again completely dark, making the job harder for Garrus to look for anything of value until he stumbled upon another datapad, this time underneath one of the beds. If it wasn't for his visor he wouldn't have seen it at all. It read:

"Finally hanging around that nowhere planet paid off. This could be our biggest haul yet. It's unlike anything I've ever seen, and I sure as hell don't see the point of it, but there are a lot of rich collectors that are into weird things like this. We'll be making a fortune here. I think we're headed to Noveria. Most people there deal with such shady businesses. The captain thinks we'll find our buyer there. I hope I get my fair share of the cut, or heads will roll."

Things still weren't exactly clear, but Garrus could put two and two together. It was bound that whatever these pirates found made them a target for that ship that had attacked them. The details were still sketchy, but Garrus didn't care either way as his only concern right now was finding Shepard.

There was a faint sound in the CIC that Garrus didn't fail to hear. He had to check it out, he could have been followed here. He drew his sniper rifle and got back to the door. It opened just before he had reached it and before he knew it, a husk's hand appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his sniper rifle, tossing it on the ground, and effectively removing Garrus' only source of light. Garrus reacted instantly as he pulled out his pistol, activating its own flashlight, avoiding a second husk's attempt to take a stab at him, and aimed for its head, blowing it off, though that gave the other one a chance to swing its arm at the gun. Garrus knew better this time and took a step backward, quickly aiming for the other husk's head, illuminating it with the flashlight on his crosshair moments before pulling the trigger.

With his attention concentrated on the husks coming from the CIC, Garrus had almost remained oblivious to the fact that the door on the other side of the medical bay had opened, as well, and another couple of husks were charging right at him. Had he been a second late, one of the them would have incapacitated him, but he went out of the way towards one of the medical beds and fired a barrage of rounds into its back, and then doing the same with the other. That was too close for comfort. For mindless creatures the husks somehow knew how to organize themselves. He then realized he was still counting his kills. He hadn't suspected the extent to which he had gotten used to fighting alongside Shepard. Boy, did he miss her so much already.

There was no time to waste. Garrus picked up his fallen sniper rifle and headed straight for the passage the second wave of husks had gone through just a few seconds ago. It led to what he estimated were the crew quarters, all banged up like the rest of the ship. He doubted he'd find anything useful here, but something caught his eye. There was a console on the other side of the room facing the sleeping pods. It was pretty badly damaged, but still functional, as it flickered in the dark every five seconds or so. Garrus slowly approached it, illuminating every nook of the crew quarters for hidden husks.

Soon he found himself standing over the console. Because it was constantly turning itself on and off it was impossible to try to get anything out of it, but he used his omni-tool to power it up as the model was compatible with the computer port. Much to his surprise, the console contained archives of video feeds on the ship in a sequence of files. He tried loading one up, but it returned an error, reporting that the file was corrupted. The databanks must have been badly damaged even if the basic processing power of the console was restored. It returned the same error for a few more of these files and Garrus was just about to give up when one of these archived live feeds finally booted up. It was timestamped forty-eight hours ago.

The flickering computer screen displayed two heavily armored men standing inside a room that felt somehow familiar to Garrus. They were recorded by a camera on the ceiling and they were aiming their guns at a window by a door. There was a group of husks on the other side of the door banging on the window. There was a very faint sound, but Garrus could hear the two men talking amongst themselves.

"How could they do this to us?", one of them asked indignantly.

"I don't know! Quinos promised that he'd only experiment with those scumbags, damn it!", the other one yelled in frustration.

"I knew we should have never come here!", the first one said, "As soon as we saw what we were dealing with here, we should have gotten the hell out! That artifact was bad enough!"

"Wait, wait, let me think!", the other grabbed his head as he paced around the room, "The garbage vent should be on this side of the wall, right? Do you remember the schematics?"

"No! Why would I?", the first soldier snapped.

"I could use a concussion grenade to break a hole inside, they wouldn't dare follow us in there!", the other proposed, looking through his equipment while the first one kept his gun at the husks outside.

With that, the video started breaking up, eventually stopping. No other files could be accessed. Instead of the clarification Garrus hoped this console would bring, it brought confusion. That had to be the same Crin Quinos that those soldiers mentioned. Then why would he be locked up in a ship and call for help if he was the one doing the experiments?

Garrus had to press on. Whatever wicked conspiracy was going on here, he had to get Shepard out of it. He had remained vigilant while watching the feed and since the private quarters were a dead end, he proceeded towards the door next to the damaged computer console.

There was a staircase that led upwards to another passage. After climbing up the steps and going through a damaged door, Garrus was now standing on what looked like was the bridge. It was much more massive than the Normandy's bridge. The floor was scattered with corpses of husks. They were surrounded by disabled computer consoles. Not much Garrus could use to his advantage here.

Somebody had really tried to get through the door on the other side of the bridge. There were countless of stains on it which resembled the form of a hand, severely damaged, but unfortunately for the one trying to get out, it was reinforced pretty tight. However, it was no blast door, and Garrus had the privilege of having an omni-tool that could crack it. After a few attempts he managed to unlock it, though actually getting it open proved harder because of the extent of the damage it had endured.

The room beyond was small and it resembled a lab of some sort. To Garrus' surprise, the research terminal by the two tests tubes on either side looked completely functional, and the room itself didn't look like it had seen any action. Keeping his guard up on all times, Garrus accessed the terminal. Clearly, the pirates hadn't been very interested in research of any kind, but there was an audio file that had been recorded. As soon as he checked to see that nothing suspicious was going on on either side of the room, Garrus turned the archived audio recording on.

"The results are very promising", Garrus could immediately recognize Crin Quinos' voice, "I truly believe I've discovered the way these artifacts cause the mental degeneration often seen when people are in close proximity to them. It's done through a specific kind of energy that they release."

"But have you found a way to harvest that energy?", another all too familiar voice responded. Garrus couldn't believe his ears. There was no doubt that the other voice in the conversation belonged to Saren.

"I believe so, yes. I've captured it in a transmitter that could be turned on and off, but otherwise performs the same function", the other turian answered, "The major difference here is that we can control the subjects. The artifact itself is too dangerous as it also physically transforms the ones it affects, thus rendering them useless. We must leave it as it is. That's why I've reinforced the doors on the other side of the ship. The pirates have already undergone the transformation and would now die to protect it."

"Good. They've served their purpose now. Proceed with the next step of the plan.", Saren commanded.

"Luring Shepard in will be the hard part. I'll have to think of something. After she takes the bait, however, I'll do everything you told me to", Crin Quinos replied confidently.

"Don't fail me, Quinos. This is a very delicate matter", Saren spoke, "I'm expecting to see you soon with our new mole."

"Sir, I don't think it'll be a problem, as I'm confident that it should work, but… What if it doesn't? It hasn't been tested yet", Crin Quinos asked a bit timidly.

"I believe I just told you that I'll be expecting our new mole", Saren snarled, "But we don't have much time for testing. If it doesn't work… Leave her to rot. A quick death would be an easy way out for someone like her."

"Understood, sir", Crin Quinos replied as the recording ended.

Garrus' heart rate had been going off the charts with every single word uttered on the audio recording. If what had been said was true, then Shepard was in for a fate much, _much_ worse than death. Everything had been organized to ensure her capture and her subjugation. And if Garrus didn't do anything right _now_, the galaxy was about to lose its only bright star in the whole of space.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

More corridors. This ship was so full of dark empty corridors. Ever since Garrus had heard the audio recording of his former friend Crin Quinos and Saren, he doubled his pace, almost completely disregarding his previously stealthy approach. He hadn't encountered any more husks in that part of the ship, but its structure was so massive and complex. There were so many connecting hallways leading to countless cargo bays, most of them empty. Garrus memorized every route he had tried, but he still felt like he was in a maze. Horrors he couldn't even imagine might have already befallen Shepard and he was having trouble finding his way around. It was deploring.

It had been several hours since he and Shepard were separated. The longest hours Garrus had ever had to endure. But he didn't feel any shred of weariness. If anything, with time his resolve had only strengthened, as did his determination to save Shepard. He had to do whatever it took to find her, even if that meant that he had to spend days on the ship.

Garrus didn't waste a second to catch his breath or rest. His search never faltered as he took his time to analyze every single room, look for any clue as to Shepard's location. He had barely managed to spare a moment to think about Crin Quinos. His friend never struck him as somebody who'd betray him. Despite having a brilliant scientific mind, he had to have succumbed to Saren's compelling arguments, just like everyone else who worked for him. Regardless of their past, Garrus' anger towards Quinos was formidable, and he would kill him with no hesitation for doing what he did to Shepard if he ever found him.

More and more rooms and Shepard was still nowhere to be found. Garrus couldn't help but feel worried. Was it possible that she was not even here anymore? Was this all a witch hunt? Was he alone in the ship, running around like a mouse in a maze with no cheese?

No. She was here. He could feel it. He didn't know how, but deep inside, beneath all of his worries, he knew that she was alive. It was almost as if she was calling out to him. It was not a feeling he could describe. And he would never quit searching even if he had to go through the entire ship over again. Even if he had to go back and fight with the army of husks and their precious artifact.

After going through a pretty narrow hallway, Garrus reached one of the locked doors. He had to use his omni-tool for a lot of the cargo bays that had crates inside, and this door was no different. No one had even bothered trying to take them all away. Saren's intention had always been to lure Shepard. He didn't even sound interested in Quinos' experiment, the artifact itself, or anything else these pirates might have stolen. What's more, it wasn't apparently good enough for Saren to simply kill Shepard, he had to make it as horrendous and painful as possible. As if Garrus didn't need more reason to want that turian dead.

The door to the room was finally unlocked. Garrus hadn't encountered any hostiles for a very long time, but he wasn't going to take his chances. Pulling out his sniper rifle, he started going over every inch of the room with his flashlight from cover as he did with the rest. It was a relatively small room with no obvious purpose. There was a window on the ceiling, however, providing a view towards the stars. There was nothing to suggest that there was any kind of activity in the room, so he went inside to explore further, only to find his breath stop and his heart skip a beat as he illuminated the other half of the room.

Shepard.

It was her. Garrus' stomach turned itself over as he saw what they had done to her. She was curled up on the floor, several cuts on her face, her hands and legs bruised and shackled to the wall behind, her clothes ripped, her eyes closed.

"Shepard", Garrus whispered, running to her side as fast as he could, kneeling down next to her and leaving his sniper rifle behind. He checked her pulse.

She was alive. Her pulse was very faint, but she was alive. And she breathed in and out. He looked her over once again now that he was right beside her.

"What have they done to you, Shepard?", he whispered. He grabbed one of her hands with his own, making sure that she was indeed real, and said quietly, "Shepard, please wake up. It's me. It's Garrus."

But she didn't open her eyes. Something was wrong. He kept on calling her name but she didn't respond. What had that experiment done to her?

"Shepard, please, wake up!", Garrus raised his voice panically, still holding onto her hand firmly, "Please, Shepard… I need you."

It felt like hours when it was only seconds that passed and Shepard's eyes started to flutter. Then her gorgeous eyes were locked to his.

"Garrus?", she whispered so faintly that he almost didn't hear her. But it was her voice, her beautiful voice that spoke his name, a voice he hadn't realized he missed so much. She was here. She was back. "Is that…", she gulped, "…you?"

"Yes, Shepard, it's me", Garrus assured her, his mandibles twitching into a comforting smile, "You're safe now. Are you all right?"

"Never felt… better", she whispered as she gave him that wonderful smile. He would have chucked if she didn't look so sincere as she said it.

"I'm so sorry, Shepard", he said, "I'm sorry for letting all of this happen. It's all my fault."

"You've got… nothing to be sorry about, Garrus", she looked at him earnestly, feebly squeezing her hand around his, "You're here. I can't ask for anything more."

Garrus could feel the pang in his heart. She looked so weak and fragile from whatever they had put her through. But it was her. Saren's inhumane experiment had failed, he was sure of it. Shepard had fought and won.

"I've got a little medi-gel left", Garrus said, releasing his hand from hers and administering the medication, "But I don't know if it will be enough, Shepard. We have to get you back to the Normandy as fast as possible."

"Are we still on that ship?", Shepard asked weakly.

"Yes. We were lured in here. Saren tried to… perform some kind of an experiment on you, along with Crin Quinos, who was apparently in league with him", Garrus explained, "But I don't think he succeeded. He underestimated you, Shepard."

Shepard looked sorrowfully at Garrus and reached out for his hand again, "I'm sorry, Garrus… For your friend."

"My friend died a long time ago", Garrus replied, and after a bit of a pause he added, "I've got you back. That's all that matters."

Shepard gave him another smile, though she still seemed sad for him.

"What do we do now?", Shepard said after another moment of silence, hissing in pain as she tried to put herself into a sitting position, her shackles still dangling, "Can we contact the Normandy?"

"Wait! Try not to move, Shepard", Garrus warned with concern. He turned on his omni-tool and used it to fire a series of overload bursts that released Shepard's shackles one by one.

"Thank you, Garrus", Shepard spoke, now free of any restraints. She still let out a little gasp as she attempted to move her hands. They still hurt badly.

Garrus turned on his omni-tool and tried to get a transmission to the Normandy, but to no avail, "Damn it. There's still something jamming us."

"The static is louder, though", Shepard noticed, and said as she slowly began to stand up, "It's probably coming from somewhere close."

"Shepard, wait!", Garrus instinctively put his hands on her arms while she was halfway up, "You're not going anywhere, you can barely even breathe! You have to rest now!"

"Are you giving your commander orders, Garrus?", Shepard replied, though in a teasing manner. Garrus stared at her in return with the same concerned expression on his face. She sighed as she got back on the floor and sat on the ground as she had before.

"I'm worried for you, Shepard", Garrus said, scratching the side of his face awkwardly, trying to find the words, "It's just that… Well… I am afraid I'll lose you again. I, uh… I don't know if I can do that."

"You won't", Shepard simply spoke, her eyes on Garrus'.

"All right, Shepard… I'll just be a minute to check it out", Garrus nodded towards the door to the corridor, "I don't think anyone's still here. Those husks are far away on the other side of the ship. If anything, _anything_ happens…"

"I know", Shepard nodded, her hand resting on her stomach, "I know."

"Here", Garrus knelt down to hand his pistol to her, "Just in case. And for the darkness", he turned its flashlight on, allowing his hand to linger on hers for a second, "I'll be back before you know it."

He waited her to nod once again until he picked up his sniper rifle and went out the room, throwing one more glance towards her. He was so glad she was back and it pained him to leave her side even if it was only for a while, especially when she was so vulnerable, but he had to find a way to get them both back on the Normandy.

Sprinting towards the other side of the corridor he had gone to the room through, always watching his back, Garrus relied on his visor to pick up the jamming device. He hadn't stumbled upon it while he looked for Shepard, so it had to be somewhere in the remainder of the ship, and if she was correct, it was somewhere close. Garrus had gone in as far as the engine room, but there was nothing there that was sending any signals. After heading past a few more rooms, he had now entered what seemed like the communications hub for the ship. Unlike a lot of the previous consoles he had seen, the one in this room didn't look damaged.

Since every command was encrypted, Garrus hacked the terminal with his omni-tool to allow further access. Both the jamming signal and the fake distress call were being sent from here, and Garrus was just about to input the override command when he heard a clang behind him. He reacted just in time to avoid a round of a rifle which would have gone right through his skull. He rolled sideways over the floor, preparing his sniper rifle to shoot his attacker, when a sudden burst of sparks encircling it appeared. As soon as he pressed the trigger and saw that nothing happened, Garrus knew the gun was overloaded. Three lights ahead suddenly illuminated him. It took him a while to see that he stood face to face with Crin Quinos, who was surrounded by two turian soldiers in the other side of the room, all of them aiming their pistols at him.

"Garrus", Crin Quinos' raspy voice said, "You actually found her. What a beautiful sentiment. Never knew you had it in you."

"And I never knew you were a coward, you bastard!", Garrus yelled, his sniper rifle still in his hand, "Why, Crin? Why the hell did you do this? You were a good man! How can you possibly justify what you've done to Shepard?"

"It was a necessary sacrifice", Quinos replied, still aiming his pistol at Garrus, "You know what the Reapers are. You know they are returning. It is inevitable. Forging an alliance with them will jump galactic civlization forward hundreds of years into the future. And we can't have Shepard in our way any longer!"

"Just because Saren says so? Since when have you worshipped him?", Garrus snapped.

"Saren is the only one I've ever known who is not afraid of moving forward!", Quinos shouted back, "Can't you see the galaxy has been in a state of stagnation for years? The _humans_, a species that only recently became part of galactic society, are now equal to the turians, who have been a part of it for millennia! It's deploring, Garrus! We need the Reapers and their technology!"

"Except that your little experiment failed, didn't it?", Garrus sneered, "You wanted to turn Shepard into a mole. You wanted to break her. But you couldn't. And you failed Saren."

"Shut up!", Quinos yelled, the hand holding the pistol shaking a bit, "You don't know anything! The Garrus I knew would have rationalized! Where's your common sense? Why are you suddenly so narrow-minded?"

"Because it's _wrong_!", Garrus answered, "You can't force a change like this! You can't play with the lives of so many innocents just so you can achieve your own selfish goals!"

"If you are not capable of seeing reason…", Quinos sighed, "Then I guess we'll have to settle this the old-fashioned way."

"Indeed we should", Garrus replied as he immediately sent a burst of overload from his omni-tool directly at Crin Quinos's pistol, rendering it useless, while dodging the rounds of the other two soldiers' guns.

He charged towards the soldier to the left of Crin Quinos, using his sniper rifle to deflect the bullets of the other, and rammed it in his stomach. The sheer force made him drop his pistol, which Garrus immediately reclaimed for himself, but was only able to fire it at its previous owner once until Crin Quinos hit him in the face with his fist. The turian then charged towards Garrus, with the latter dodging him, though that came at a price as the only surviving bodyguard fired a round in Garrus' left shoulder.

Garrus was then pushed on the floor. He managed to use his only good arm to pull the trigger of his pistol at the bodyguard, firing a burst of rounds into his torso. The soldier fell to the ground in an instant, though before Garrus could turn his attention to Crin Quinos, his weapon was knocked out of his hand by the other turian's foot. Hissing from the pain it caused him, Garrus turned his head to look down the barrel of Crin Quinos' pistol aimed at his skull. He couldn't move an inch without being shot at in the head. They had proved too much for him. He was defeated.

"You should have stood aside, Garrus", Quinos yelled in anger.

Garrus could not believe that despite all of his efforts, his life was going to end like this. He had finally found Shepard, and just like that, he was going to lose her again. He couldn't keep his promise to her. He hadn't even told her the many things he longed to tell her. Maybe it was for the best that she never knew. He had failed them both.

He closed his eyes, not wanting Crin Quinos to be the last thing he ever saw in his life. He would have rather died with thoughts of Shepard. Right now, it was only her he wanted to be with.

And it felt like he really was when he finally heard the dreaded sound of a shot ringing out.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The bullet hit him right in the head. There was no doubt that he was dead for good. It was finally over.

Shepard was standing beside the door to the room, her one arm stretched out with the pistol in her hand, and the other flat on her stomach. She had done it. She had arrived just in time.

Crin Quinos' body was now lying on the floor beside Garrus. The latter had lifted his head up in shock and awe. Shepard had disabled the flashlight so Quinos wouldn't see her coming and she probably couldn't be noticed in the dark.

She dragged her feet across the floor, still hurting from all the injuries she had and from trying to catch up with Garrus.

"Shepard!", Garrus cried out in surprise as she neared him, the shock evident in his eyes. He struggled to get up, but then grunted in an attempt to fight the bullet wound in his shoulder.

"Garrus… Are you okay?", Shepard asked with concern, only now seeing the extent of the damage on Garrus' armor. Thankfully, he seemed to be all right. She reached out her hand for him.

"Me?", Garrus replied indignantly, taking her hand as she helped him get up, "I didn't think it would be even physically possible for you to come here. I don't want to imagine how painful it must have been. I thought I told you to stay put."

"And I thought I was the commander here", Shepard smiled, looking into his caring eyes. He had just been on the verge of death and he was concerned for _her_. Despite all the physical pain she knew she'd feel, she couldn't help herself and hugged him in a tender embrace. Garrus seemed surprised at first, his shoulder probably hurting, but then quickly returned the hug. It felt so right. She felt so much at home. She didn't want to let go. They stayed quiet for a few seconds until Shepard suddenly burst into tears.

"Hey, hey… What's wrong?", Garrus asked, stroking her back with his hand.

"I was… so worried about you", Shepard sniffed through the tears, her voice trembling, "I don't know why… But something told me I had to follow you. I just knew I had to."

"Everything's okay now, Shepard… It's all over", Garrus whispered while they were still locked in their embrace, "It's going to be fine. Everything will go back to normal."

"Because of you, Garrus", she said as she moved her head back to look at him again, her hands still on his arms, "You saved my life… in more ways than one."

"And you, Shepard…", Garrus replied, suddenly avoiding her gaze, silent for a few seconds until he whispered, "When you were taken, I… I don't know. I felt… _empty_. Hollow. I realized I've come to depend on you", he glanced towards her, then looked down to the floor again, "I realized that you… That you've been keeping me alive since we met. Truly alive. You gave me a reason."

"Garrus…", Shepard whispered, shocked from what she had heard, which give her confidence to admit what she had realized during the time she was locked up, "When I was slipping in and out of consciousness, I could _feel _that something was happening. That someone was trying to get in my head. Every memory I wish I could forget started haunting me, threatened to consume me… But thinking of you somehow made it easier. I understood that I felt something for you that I haven't felt for anyone before…"

"I've also come to… care for you. The thought of losing you…", Garrus spoke uncertainly, "I don't know if you felt the same way. What exactly is this? Is this friendship?"

"I don't think so, Garrus", Shepard replied.

"But what is it, then?", Garrus asked, "We're from two different species. A human and a turian, at that."

"I can't say for sure, Garrus", Shepard answered tentatively, taking one of his hands with hers and gently squeezing it, "But it feels wonderful."

"Yeah… It does", Garrus said softly, lifting his hand slowly and hesitatingly, and then caressed Shepard's hair, letting his hand linger on the cut on her left cheek. She shivered at his gentle touch and from the affection in his blue eyes.

"Heavens, Shepard", Garrus broke the silence, relinquishing his hand from her cheek, Shepard already missing the sensation, "I'd never hoped that you'd ever feel this way about me… But what we have, Shepard... I want to make it work. You're worth any effort."

Shepard embraced Garrus again, letting a few more tears of joy fall down her face. She was truly happy again. She honestly believed that no longer would she need to put on a brave face again. Never would she have to fight that fear inside of her alone. She had Garrus. She was complete. They might not have known each other for such a long time, they might have been from two different species, but she couldn't care less. Things like that… they just happened. Being deprived of him made her sure that she couldn't live without him anymore. And what she shared with Garrus was irrefutable. Was it love? She wouldn't know for certain. What she was sure of was that she hadn't felt anything like this before.

"We have to contact the Normandy, Shepard", Garrus finally spoke with a hint of reluctance in his voice, pulling away from Shepard, "You're still badly hurt. Doctor Chakwas has to take a look at you. Besides, you desperately need the rest."

Garrus grabbed Shepard's hand and slowly led her towards the console on the other side of the room. She had completely forgotten that they still needed to be rescued. With Garrus at her side she already felt safe. She slowly sat down on the floor, still finding it difficult to move, while Garrus fumbled around the console and disabled the jamming signal. He then proceeded to contact the Normandy via his omni-tool, letting Joker know that they were alive, and transmitted their location.

He then sat down next to her. They had some time to kill until the ship arrived, and they decided to spend it in each other's company. Garrus took Shepard's hand with his own and twitched his mandibles into a smile. She let her head rest on his right shoulder as she played with his fingers through her own. She turned her head around to look at him.

"Twenty-nine", she merely spoke.

"What?", Garrus asked in confusion.

"My kill count. Twenty-nine. I still kept track", she beamed a smile at him.

"You've got me beat, Shepard", Garrus chuckled, releasing her hand and putting his arm around her shoulder, "I could only manage a seven."

"Quite embarrassing when you think about it", Shepard laughed, "I was in a coma most of the time and you still have fewer kills than me."

"Don't get too confident, Shepard, I'll catch up soon enough", Garrus assured her, "We won't be running out of people wanting to kill us and doing all sorts of unspeakable things to us anytime soon."

"Ah, Garrus…", Shepard chuckled as she lifted her head to kiss him on the cheek, "I can't tell you just how much I missed you."

Shepard was ready for anything. She was going to fight to secure a future for the galaxy, a future for her and Garrus. And nothing, not even Saren, was going to stand in their way. Garrus had been wrong about one thing. As she looked him in the eyes, she knew that not everything was going back to normal after this. Some things changed for the better.

**The End**


End file.
